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Posts tagged as “Linux”

How About a Chromebook on Steroids?

By FOSS Force Guest Writer on February 9, 2015 |

Distros, Hardware and Operating Systems

How About a Chromebook on Steroids?Chromebook

Jim Anderson

There’s been a lot of interesting Linux news of late. Not just GNU/Linux, but all types of Linux, Android, Chrome OS, Firefox OS, embedded (IoT), cloud computing, cars, TVs, just about anything you can think of. But truth be told, I’d like to see more Linux on the desktop — just as Linus Torvalds said he would like to see.

The recent purchase of a Chromebook for my son got me thinking about a new opportunity for Linux on the desktop. This is not an idea for getting a standard GNU/Linux desktop to automagically replace all existing Windows desktops, but to leverage the cloud computing paradigm with a bulked­-up Chromebook-­like system that would be workable for 80 to 90 percent of personal, school, and business needs.

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LQ Poll Results Expected and UnexpectedLinux's Tux

LQ Poll Results Expected and Unexpected

By Larry Cafiero on February 7, 2015 |

Browsers, Desktops, Distros, News, Operating Systems, Reviews and Software

Linux Questions — the place you go where you really need a Linux or FOSS question answered because, well, most of the smart FOSS folks are there answering them — released the results of its Members Choice Awards for 2015.

So when the membership of LQ speaks — or at least votes on FOSS programs — you should probably listen. Don’t take my word for it: Steven J. Vaughn-Nichols thinks so, too.

There were some expected results: For example, LibreOffice wins the Office Suite category by a ton, garnering 86 percent of the vote. To break this down, that’s nearly 9 in 10 folks favoring LibreOffice to the second-place finisher, Apache OpenOffice, and the others.

Same with categories like Browser of the Year — Firefox, need we say more? — with the blazing vulpini taking 57 percent in a crowded field. Same for Android, the Mobile Distribution of the Year which finished 40 percentage points ahead of the second-place finisher. Even vim, at 30 percent in a crowded field, heads up the Text Editor category with three times the votes of Emacs.

Larry Cafiero

Larry Cafiero is a journalist and a Free/Open Source Software advocate and is involved in several FOSS projects. Follow him on Twitter: @lcafiero

Continue readingLQ Poll Results Expected and Unexpected

CrunchBang Development Halted

By FOSS Force on February 6, 2015 |

Distros, News and Operating Systems

CrunchBang lead developer Philip Newborough released this statement on the CrunchBang forums today:

“I have decided to stop developing CrunchBang. This has not been an easy decision to make and I’ve been putting it off for months. It’s hard to let go of something you love.

“When I first started working on CrunchBang, the Linux landscape was a very different place and whilst I honestly didn’t know if there was any value to it, I knew there was a place for CrunchBang on my own systems. As it turned out, there seemed to be quite a demand for it on other people’s systems too. I’m not entirely sure why this was the case, but if I had to guess, I would say that it was probably due to the lack of competition/alternatives of the same ilk. If I’m remembering correctly, at the time, there was no LXDE tasksel in Debian and certainly no Lubuntu around. CrunchBang filled a gap and that was nifty.

Continue readingCrunchBang Development Halted
Radio Shack’s a Floater, Another RC for Bodhi & Scaling SCALEradio shack logo

Radio Shack’s a Floater, Another RC for Bodhi & Scaling SCALE

By Christine Hall on February 6, 2015 |

Business, Community, Distros, News and Operating Systems

FOSS Week in Review

With Larry Cafiero getting ready for SCALE, that left me with the job of doing this Week in Review. Happy to do it.

Radio Shack files for bankrupcy

This isn’t a FOSS story exactly, but I’m sure there’s hardly a FOSSer of a certain age who didn’t spend too many hours at a Radio Shack, back when the stores were for electronic hobbyists. Indeed, many of us saw our first consumer computers at Radio Shack, with programs loaded and data saved to a manual cassette recorder.

radio shack logoYup, those were the days.

Anyway, Radio Shack as we knew it has already been gone for years, as in recent times the chain has attempted to redefine itself as a place to buy mobile devices and data plans, now that we no longer fix electronic stuff by replacing resistors, capacitors, selenium rectifiers and the like.

The phone biz hasn’t worked out too well, so yesterday the company filed Chapter 11. The company has worked out a deal with its largest creditor, Sprint, which will take over many of Radio Shack’s stores, although the brand will live on in a co-branding arrangement with Sprint. Many Radio Shack locations are slated to close completely.

Christine Hall

Christine Hall has been a journalist since 1971. In 2001, she began writing a weekly consumer computer column and started covering Linux and FOSS in 2002 after making the switch to GNU/Linux. Follow her on Twitter: @BrideOfLinux

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Continue readingRadio Shack’s a Floater, Another RC for Bodhi & Scaling SCALE
Under the SCALE Big TopAda Initiative Ally Workshop

Under the SCALE Big Top

By Larry Cafiero on February 4, 2015 |

Business, Community, News and Software

As we get closer to the Southern California Linux Expo — SCALE 13x for those of you keeping score at home — it bears mentioning that the largest community-run Linux/FOSS show in North America has grown to host a lot of other sub-events during the course of the four-day expo.

In years past, Ubuntu, Fedora, PostgreSQL and Chef held their own sessions at SCALE — Ubucon, Fedora Activity Day, PostgreSQL Days and Intro to Chef respectively — and they’ll be back this year. Highlighting the “event within an event” lineup at SCALE 13x are also a few others.

Puppet Labs logoMost prominently, Puppet Labs is holding its Puppet Camp at SCALE 13x on Thursday, February 19. Puppet Camps are one-day, regional events held around the world for people who are currently using or interested in using Puppet. Attendees have the opportunity to talk to a diverse group of Puppet users, benefit from presentations delivered by prominent community members, share experiences, and discuss potential implementations of Puppet with their peers. There is a separate registration for this all-day event, and more information can be found at the link above.

Larry Cafiero

Larry Cafiero is a journalist and a Free/Open Source Software advocate and is involved in several FOSS projects. Follow him on Twitter: @lcafiero

Continue readingUnder the SCALE Big Top
Welcome the New Breed of Linux UsersNew Linux users

Welcome the New Breed of Linux Users

By Christine Hall on February 2, 2015 |

Community and Operating Systems

Without having a basic knowledge of the inner workings of the internal combustion engine, people drive cars to work every day. Some, in fact, are excellent drivers. Likewise, people watch television and successfully listen to the radio without having a clear understanding of the science behind “over the air” broadcasting. To benefit from wearing corrective lenses it’s not necessary to be an optometrist. It doesn’t take a master electrician to change a light bulb.

But nobody should use a computer without being a master programmer, which is the gospel-according-to-many, especially those who post on Linux forums.

New Linux users
Computer users in a marketplace in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Some people don’t like any changes made to Linux user space which makes the operating system easier to use or configure for casual users. They would rather the user be befuddled and helpless, because according to them, people who don’t know how to open a terminal and edit a configuration file in Emacs have no business sitting at a computer keyboard for any purpose.

These people moan about Linux being taken over by everyday computer users who know little or nothing about FOSS and who mainly want a computer to get work done, exchange emails, watch videos and visit with friends on social sites. OMG, we’re talking ordinary folks who figure they don’t need to know how sausage is made in order to have some for breakfast, and they’re now using Linux without a clue as to how it’s made either.

Christine Hall

Christine Hall has been a journalist since 1971. In 2001, she began writing a weekly consumer computer column and started covering Linux and FOSS in 2002 after making the switch to GNU/Linux. Follow her on Twitter: @BrideOfLinux

FOSSForce.com
Continue readingWelcome the New Breed of Linux Users
SCALE Prep Continues; Will Dell Get It Right?I'm going to SCALE 13x

SCALE Prep Continues; Will Dell Get It Right?

By Larry Cafiero on January 30, 2015 |

Community, Hardware, News and Operating Systems

FOSS Week in Review

While linux.conf.au (held in New Zealand this year) is now in the record books and FOSDEM is currently happening in Brussels, the organizational team over at the Southern California Linux Expo (SCALE) has had its proverbial and collective shoulder to the wheel for the last few months as the first Linux/FOSS event of the year in North America — SCALE 13x — is starting to shape up.

The SCALE 13x schedule was posted earlier this week, and for those more observant among you, you’ll notice an additional day this year. SCALE 13x begins on a Thursday — February 19 — and runs through Sunday, February 22. SCALE’s Thursday schedule will be dedicated to specialty session tracks, similar and in addition to the tracks that have traditionally populated the Friday schedule.

I'm going to SCALE 13xDue to the increasing attendance, SCALE has also extended the exhibit hall hours, which will now open on Friday, February 20, at 2 p.m. Saturday’s exhibit hall hours will remain the same, beginning at 10 a.m. and closing at 6 p.m. And on Sunday — traditionally a quieter day in general — SCALE 13x has opted to close the exhibit hall at 2 p.m., though sessions will continue to run on Sunday afternoon.

Ruth Suehle and a speaker to be named later (more than likely in the next 24 hours) will keynote at SCALE 13x. There are about 130 sessions in the four days, and just over 100 exhibitors.

Larry Cafiero

Larry Cafiero is a journalist and a Free/Open Source Software advocate and is involved in several FOSS projects. Follow him on Twitter: @lcafiero

Continue readingSCALE Prep Continues; Will Dell Get It Right?

Top Ten Things Linux Users Say About systemd

By FOSS Force on January 24, 2015 |

Community, Operating Systems and Politics

Back about four or five years ago, when FOSS Force was just a young whippersnapper yelling to be heard, we found people first noticing us when we dreamed up a unique weekly feature we cleverly called the Top Ten List. It was an immediate success. Unfortunately, we can’t claim credit for originating the concept, as Michael J. Fox saw one of our lists on his DeLorean’s dashboard computer while on a foray into the twenty-first century, and told someone at NBC when back home in the eighties, who told David Letterman. We lost out when Letterman used it on his show and took credit for it — even though it was our idea years later in the first place. Thanks, David.

Until now, we thought the days of the Top Ten on FOSS Force were long gone. However, the systemd brouhaha has awakened the inner Top Ten List that has been sleeping within us for all these years. Today, for one day only, the Top Ten List returns for one last encore — or the last one until the next time something tickles us funny.

Ladies and gentlemen, from the home office in Omaha, Nebraska, here is this week’s Top Ten List — the top ten things Linux users say about systemd.

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Mea Culpas & Cranky Patients Named Ken

By Larry Cafiero on January 23, 2015 |

Community, Distros, Hardware, News, Operating Systems and Site News

FOSS Week in Review

One of the most discussed items of the week, arriving with much fanfare, comes from our friends at Canonical/Ubuntu, who brought you Ubuntu TV and Ubuntu Edge — oh wait, they said they’d bring them but never actually delivered — and who now wants to be the operating system behind the nebulously termed “Internet of Things.”

Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols starts with a mea culpa in his ZDNet article for assuming that Ubuntu Core — Canonical’s entry in the Internet of Things operating systems — was “a pure server play.” The article, of course, outlines the plan, with details provided by Mark Shuttleworth himself. It’s definitely worth a read.

Larry Cafiero

Larry Cafiero is a journalist and a Free/Open Source Software advocate and is involved in several FOSS projects. Follow him on Twitter: @lcafiero

Continue readingMea Culpas & Cranky Patients Named Ken